First as Tragedy, Then as Farce

First as Tragedy, Then as Farce

Author: Slavoj Zizek

Publisher: Verso Books

Published: 2009-10-05

Total Pages: 119

ISBN-13: 1781683778

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Billions of dollars were hastily poured into the global banking system in a frantic attempt at financial stabilisation. So why has it not been possible to bring the same forces to bear in addressing world poverty and environmental crisis? In this take-no-prisoners analysis, Slavoj Zizek frames the moral failures of the modern world in terms of the epoch-making events of the first decade of this century. What he finds is the old one-two punch of history: the jab of tragedy, the right hook of farce. In the attacks of 9/11 and the global credit crunch, liberalism dies twice: as a political doctrine and as an economic theory. The election of Donald Trump only confirms the bankruptcy of a liberal order on its last legs. First as Tragedy, Then as Farce is a call for the left to reinvent itself in the light of our desperate historical situation. The time for liberal, moralistic blackmail is over.


Book Synopsis First as Tragedy, Then as Farce by : Slavoj Zizek

Download or read book First as Tragedy, Then as Farce written by Slavoj Zizek and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2009-10-05 with total page 119 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Billions of dollars were hastily poured into the global banking system in a frantic attempt at financial stabilisation. So why has it not been possible to bring the same forces to bear in addressing world poverty and environmental crisis? In this take-no-prisoners analysis, Slavoj Zizek frames the moral failures of the modern world in terms of the epoch-making events of the first decade of this century. What he finds is the old one-two punch of history: the jab of tragedy, the right hook of farce. In the attacks of 9/11 and the global credit crunch, liberalism dies twice: as a political doctrine and as an economic theory. The election of Donald Trump only confirms the bankruptcy of a liberal order on its last legs. First as Tragedy, Then as Farce is a call for the left to reinvent itself in the light of our desperate historical situation. The time for liberal, moralistic blackmail is over.


First As Tragedy, Then As Farce

First As Tragedy, Then As Farce

Author: Slavoj Žižek

Publisher: Verso

Published: 2009-10-05

Total Pages: 165

ISBN-13: 1844674282

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

From the tragedy of 9/11 to the farce of the financial meltdown.


Book Synopsis First As Tragedy, Then As Farce by : Slavoj Žižek

Download or read book First As Tragedy, Then As Farce written by Slavoj Žižek and published by Verso. This book was released on 2009-10-05 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the tragedy of 9/11 to the farce of the financial meltdown.


What Comes After Farce

What Comes After Farce

Author: Hal Foster

Publisher: Verso Books

Published: 2020-05-19

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1788738128

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

If farce follows tragedy, what follows farce? Where does the double predicament of a post-truth and post-shame politics leave artists and critics on the left? How to demystify a hegemonic order that dismisses its own contradictions? How to belittle a political elite that cannot be embarrassed, or to mock party leaders who thrive on the absurd? How to out-dada President Ubu? And, in any event, why add outrage to a media economy that thrives on the same? What Comes After Farce? comments on shifts in art, criticism, and fiction in the face of the current regime of war, surveillance, extreme inequality, and media disruption. A first section focuses on the cultural politics of emergency since 9/11, including the use and abuse of trauma, paranoia, and kitsch. A second reviews the neoliberal makeover of art institutions during the same period. Finally, a third section surveys transformations in media as reflected in recent art, film, and fiction. Among the phenomena explored here are "machine vision" (images produced by machines for other machines without a human interface),"operational images" (images that do not represent the world so much as intervene in it), and the algorithmic scripting of information so pervasive in our everyday lives.


Book Synopsis What Comes After Farce by : Hal Foster

Download or read book What Comes After Farce written by Hal Foster and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2020-05-19 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If farce follows tragedy, what follows farce? Where does the double predicament of a post-truth and post-shame politics leave artists and critics on the left? How to demystify a hegemonic order that dismisses its own contradictions? How to belittle a political elite that cannot be embarrassed, or to mock party leaders who thrive on the absurd? How to out-dada President Ubu? And, in any event, why add outrage to a media economy that thrives on the same? What Comes After Farce? comments on shifts in art, criticism, and fiction in the face of the current regime of war, surveillance, extreme inequality, and media disruption. A first section focuses on the cultural politics of emergency since 9/11, including the use and abuse of trauma, paranoia, and kitsch. A second reviews the neoliberal makeover of art institutions during the same period. Finally, a third section surveys transformations in media as reflected in recent art, film, and fiction. Among the phenomena explored here are "machine vision" (images produced by machines for other machines without a human interface),"operational images" (images that do not represent the world so much as intervene in it), and the algorithmic scripting of information so pervasive in our everyday lives.


The Russians Are Coming, Again

The Russians Are Coming, Again

Author: Jeremy Kuzmarov

Publisher: NYU Press

Published: 2018-05-22

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1583676961

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Karl Marx famously wrote in The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon that history repeats itself, “first as tragedy, then as farce.” The Cold War waged between the United States and Soviet Union from 1945 until the latter's dissolution in 1991 was a great tragedy, resulting in millions of civilian deaths in proxy wars, and a destructive arms race that diverted money from social spending and nearly led to nuclear annihilation. The New Cold War between the United States and Russia is playing out as farce – a dangerous one at that. The Russians Are Coming, Again is a red flag to restore our historical consciousness about U.S.-Russian relations, and how denying this consciousness is leading to a repetition of past follies. Kuzmarov and Marciano's book is timely and trenchant. The authors argue that the Democrats’ strategy, backed by the corporate media, of demonizing Russia and Putin in order to challenge Trump is not only dangerous, but also, based on the evidence so far, unjustified, misguided, and a major distraction. Grounding their argument in all-but-forgotten U.S.-Russian history, such as the 1918-20 Allied invasion of Soviet Russia, the book delivers a panoramic narrative of the First Cold War, showing it as an all-too-avoidable catastrophe run by the imperatives of class rule and political witch-hunts. The distortion of public memory surrounding the First Cold War has set the groundwork for the New Cold War, which the book explains is a key feature, skewing the nation’s politics yet again. This is an important, necessary book, one that, by including accounts of the wisdom and courage of the First Cold War's victims and dissidents, will inspire a fresh generation of radicals in today's new, dangerously farcical times.


Book Synopsis The Russians Are Coming, Again by : Jeremy Kuzmarov

Download or read book The Russians Are Coming, Again written by Jeremy Kuzmarov and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2018-05-22 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Karl Marx famously wrote in The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon that history repeats itself, “first as tragedy, then as farce.” The Cold War waged between the United States and Soviet Union from 1945 until the latter's dissolution in 1991 was a great tragedy, resulting in millions of civilian deaths in proxy wars, and a destructive arms race that diverted money from social spending and nearly led to nuclear annihilation. The New Cold War between the United States and Russia is playing out as farce – a dangerous one at that. The Russians Are Coming, Again is a red flag to restore our historical consciousness about U.S.-Russian relations, and how denying this consciousness is leading to a repetition of past follies. Kuzmarov and Marciano's book is timely and trenchant. The authors argue that the Democrats’ strategy, backed by the corporate media, of demonizing Russia and Putin in order to challenge Trump is not only dangerous, but also, based on the evidence so far, unjustified, misguided, and a major distraction. Grounding their argument in all-but-forgotten U.S.-Russian history, such as the 1918-20 Allied invasion of Soviet Russia, the book delivers a panoramic narrative of the First Cold War, showing it as an all-too-avoidable catastrophe run by the imperatives of class rule and political witch-hunts. The distortion of public memory surrounding the First Cold War has set the groundwork for the New Cold War, which the book explains is a key feature, skewing the nation’s politics yet again. This is an important, necessary book, one that, by including accounts of the wisdom and courage of the First Cold War's victims and dissidents, will inspire a fresh generation of radicals in today's new, dangerously farcical times.


The Idea of Communism 3

The Idea of Communism 3

Author: Alex Taek-Gwang Lee

Publisher: Verso Books

Published: 2016-07-05

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 178478396X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

An all-star cast of radical intellectuals discuss the continued importance of communist principles In 2009 Slavoj Žižek brought together an acclaimed group of intellectuals to discuss the continued relevance of communism. Unexpectedly the conference attracted an audience of over 1,000 people. The discussion has continued across the world and this book gathers responses from the conference in Seoul. It includes the interventions of regular contributors Alain Badiou and Slavoj Žižek, as well as work from across Asia, notably from Chinese scholar Wang Hui, offering regional perspectives on communism in an era of global economic crisis and political upheaval.


Book Synopsis The Idea of Communism 3 by : Alex Taek-Gwang Lee

Download or read book The Idea of Communism 3 written by Alex Taek-Gwang Lee and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2016-07-05 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An all-star cast of radical intellectuals discuss the continued importance of communist principles In 2009 Slavoj Žižek brought together an acclaimed group of intellectuals to discuss the continued relevance of communism. Unexpectedly the conference attracted an audience of over 1,000 people. The discussion has continued across the world and this book gathers responses from the conference in Seoul. It includes the interventions of regular contributors Alain Badiou and Slavoj Žižek, as well as work from across Asia, notably from Chinese scholar Wang Hui, offering regional perspectives on communism in an era of global economic crisis and political upheaval.


In Defense of Lost Causes

In Defense of Lost Causes

Author: Slavoj Žižek

Publisher: Verso

Published: 2009-10-19

Total Pages: 540

ISBN-13: 1844674290

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

No Marketing Blurb


Book Synopsis In Defense of Lost Causes by : Slavoj Žižek

Download or read book In Defense of Lost Causes written by Slavoj Žižek and published by Verso. This book was released on 2009-10-19 with total page 540 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: No Marketing Blurb


Karl Marx

Karl Marx

Author: Francis Wheen

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 470

ISBN-13: 9780393049237

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Looks at the life of the father of Communism focusing primarily on the human side of the man rather than his works.


Book Synopsis Karl Marx by : Francis Wheen

Download or read book Karl Marx written by Francis Wheen and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2000 with total page 470 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Looks at the life of the father of Communism focusing primarily on the human side of the man rather than his works.


Living in the End Times

Living in the End Times

Author: Slavoj Žižek

Publisher: Verso

Published: 2011-04-18

Total Pages: 522

ISBN-13: 1844677028

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Economics.


Book Synopsis Living in the End Times by : Slavoj Žižek

Download or read book Living in the End Times written by Slavoj Žižek and published by Verso. This book was released on 2011-04-18 with total page 522 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Economics.


The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

Author: Karl Marx

Publisher:

Published: 1913

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK


Book Synopsis The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte by : Karl Marx

Download or read book The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte written by Karl Marx and published by . This book was released on 1913 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


Less Than Nothing

Less Than Nothing

Author: Slavoj Zizek

Publisher: Verso Books

Published: 2012-05-22

Total Pages: 1049

ISBN-13: 1844678970

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A thousand-page resurrection of Hegel, from the bestselling philosopher and critic who has been hailed as “one of the world’s best-known public intellectuals” (New York Review of Books) For the last two centuries, Western philosophy has developed in the shadow of Hegel, an influence each new thinker struggles to escape. As a consequence, Hegel’s absolute idealism has become the bogeyman of philosophy, obscuring the fact that he is the defining philosopher of the historical transition to modernity, a period with which our own times share startling similarities. Today, as global capitalism comes apart at the seams, we are entering a new period of transition. In Less Than Nothing—the product of a career-long focus on the part of its author—Slavoj Žižek argues it is imperative we not simply return to Hegel but that we repeat and exceed his triumphs, overcoming his limitations by being even more Hegelian than the master himself. Such an approach not only enables Žižek to diagnose our present condition, but also to engage in a critical dialogue with key strands of contemporary thought—Heidegger, Badiou, speculative realism, quantum physics, and cognitive sciences. Modernity will begin and end with Hegel.


Book Synopsis Less Than Nothing by : Slavoj Zizek

Download or read book Less Than Nothing written by Slavoj Zizek and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2012-05-22 with total page 1049 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thousand-page resurrection of Hegel, from the bestselling philosopher and critic who has been hailed as “one of the world’s best-known public intellectuals” (New York Review of Books) For the last two centuries, Western philosophy has developed in the shadow of Hegel, an influence each new thinker struggles to escape. As a consequence, Hegel’s absolute idealism has become the bogeyman of philosophy, obscuring the fact that he is the defining philosopher of the historical transition to modernity, a period with which our own times share startling similarities. Today, as global capitalism comes apart at the seams, we are entering a new period of transition. In Less Than Nothing—the product of a career-long focus on the part of its author—Slavoj Žižek argues it is imperative we not simply return to Hegel but that we repeat and exceed his triumphs, overcoming his limitations by being even more Hegelian than the master himself. Such an approach not only enables Žižek to diagnose our present condition, but also to engage in a critical dialogue with key strands of contemporary thought—Heidegger, Badiou, speculative realism, quantum physics, and cognitive sciences. Modernity will begin and end with Hegel.